


Steal my Heart, Return my Love

by nightynight



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Magic, Cats, Childhood Friends, Crying, Familiars, Forehead Kisses, Friends to Lovers, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Minor Character Death, Oops, Very minor mentions of violence, and blood, cursed!jisung, probably too much crying, witch!minho
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-26
Updated: 2019-12-26
Packaged: 2021-02-26 05:55:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,865
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21978445
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nightynight/pseuds/nightynight
Summary: Jisung is cursed, so he goes to a witch rumored to be very powerful for help. Minho is a powerful witch. 1+1=2
Relationships: Han Jisung | Han/Lee Minho | Lee Know
Comments: 21
Kudos: 248
Collections: Kpop Writers - Secret Santa 2019





	Steal my Heart, Return my Love

**Author's Note:**

> I TRIED TO DO A SERIOUS SUMMARY BUT I FAILED HARD
> 
> Anyway this is a Secret Santa gift for Jae from the Kpop Writer's Discord! I hope you enjoy it, I had a lot of fun writing it!
> 
> Psst @ Jae: I don't know your AO3 so hmu and I'll make this a gift to your account

Not much happens on a day to day basis for Minho.

He makes some potions, and bottles them. Makes some charms, then wraps them. Every few days he’ll bring his health and wellness potions to the apothecary, and his other goods to the general store. Those days are the only interesting days for him, it seems.

But Minho likes it like this. He likes his quiet little cottage in a field set a little off from the town. He likes his daily routine, and he likes doing things his own way. It’s just him and his three familiars, and he is perfectly content with that.

Said familiars tend to lounge around whatever room he’s in. They like to be close to him, he guesses, and it’s nice having them near. They have such calming magic and energy, it makes it easier for him to work. 

Soonie is sitting on his lap as he pours over various potion books, trying to find the right information that will help him complete a rare custom order. She purrs loudly as he absentmindedly strokes her back, and leans into his touch. Doongie is trying to sleep on the window sill, but Dori is playing with her tail as it lashes back and forth. In the back of his mind, Minho can feel the annoyance radiating from Doongie, and mischievous amusement from Dori. He knows a small fight will break out sooner or later, but he leaves them be.

He’s not surprised when, about ten minutes later, he hears a hiss, then a deep growl. What does surprise him, though, is Soonie joining in with her own yowl as she tenses and digs her sharp claws into Minho’s leg. He glances over to the window to see that Doongie and Dori aren’t fighting at all, but are looking intently at the front door of the cottage. 

_ Danger! Danger, Minho, danger!! _

_ Gross, nasty, disgusting!!! _

_ Bad man! Claw him, hurt him, kill him!!! _

All the feelings of his familiars hit him at once, their emotions so strong that he can physically feel it thrumming through his magic. “What the-” he mumbles to himself, and Soonie jumps off his lap to stand in front of him, her back arched and hackles raised. Doongie slinks off to hide under the coffee table in the living room, and tiny Dori bravely marches up to the front lines with Soonie.

“Hey, what’s wrong? What’s happening?” He asks them, but they seemed too consumed with their anger to notice him at all. It’s scary; his familiars have always been good at alerting him to bad things in life, and if they’re this worked up, something awful must be coming. 

Minho cautiously stands and reaches for his wand laying on the table. “Okay, girls,” he says, keeping his voice low. He reaches out through their magic connection to communicate with them better. “Go hide,” he tells them, in his mind and aloud. “Hide in my room, you’ll be safe there.”

_ No! Hurt the bad man! _

_ Can’t, must protect you!! _

_...Good idea. _

Out of the corner of his eye, Minho sees Doongie dart for his bedroom, and feels some relief knowing she’s safe. “Soonie, Dori, go to my room.” He commands, but neither move. “Now.” He says, putting some magic force behind his words. Slowly, his familiars concede to his authority and make their way to his room. Dori makes it there first, and Soonie locks eyes with him before turning and heading in after Dori. The door slams shut behind them. 

Minho huffs out a breath, then turns to look at the door. Something is coming, he knows that for sure, but he has no idea what. His cottage is out in the woods a little ways, so it could be some creature from the forest. But Dori seemed to think it was a man, so maybe someone from the village? It wouldn’t be the first time a villager came knocking at his door, but his familiars have never freaked out like this before. 

_ Knock knock knock! _

Well, whatever it is, he’s about to find out. Minho cautiously walks to the door, wand in hand, and calls out, “who is it?”

“Um, a traveler?” They answer. It’s a male’s voice, that’s for sure, but his answer doesn’t give many other clues to his identity. 

“What do you want?” Minho calls back.

“I-I heard rumors that a powerful witch lives here, and I really need some help.” He answers. “Please,” he adds in a quieter voice.

Minho pauses to think for a moment. If he’s here for help from a witch, he must not be a magic user. He seems polite enough, if not a little skittish, so he’s not some mindless brute. Maybe he really is just a simple traveler? And if he really is so dangerous, Minho wants to know why. 

He unlatches the two locks on the door, then opens it just a little in order to peer out at the man. Outside his door stands a male whose about the same height as him, wearing worn boots and rather scraggly looking clothes. His hair is a little long and shaggy, and definitely in need of a wash. The stranger shakes his head a little to move the hair out of his eyes, letting Minho get a good look at his face for the first time.

The first thing he notices on his face is two fresh looking scratches going across his cheek. The top one is longer and a little deeper than the bottom scratch, and Minho can see it’s still gradually oozing blood. Maybe he was in a fight? Minho glances down at his arms to see they are covered in scratches and puncture wounds. Some look fairly fresh, but most are healed and have become scars.

Looking back up to his face, Minho locks eyes with him. He knows those eyes. Minho leans forward a little and squints. He really looks familiar… like someone Minho knew as a child. But, it can’t be, can it? 

“...Jisung?” Minho calls after a moment’s hesitation.

“Minho hyung!?” He says, his voice overlapping Minho’s. His eyes are wide and his mouth hangs open in surprise.

They both stare at each other in shock before Jisung’s expression melts into a large smile. His whole demeanor changes as he smiles. He stands straighter and holds his head higher, and his shoulders are relaxed. “It is you, isn’t it? Wow, it’s been so long! I had no idea you were a witch!”

Minho finds himself smiling just as large as Jisung, and he slips him wand into his pants pocket as he fully opens the door to stand before him. “It has been a long time, hasn’t it?” He replies, and, embarrassingly, he can feel some tears build in his eyes. He blinks them away quickly, fast enough that Jisung doesn’t seem to notice.

They stand quietly for a moment, just looking at each other and smiling, before Jisung opens his arms for a hug. Minho immediately steps forward to embrace him, and sighs in relief when he wraps his arms around him.

“I missed you,” Minho whispers into his shoulder, and Jisung squeezes him a little tighter.

“I missed you, too, hyung,” Jisung replies. They hold on to each other for a few more seconds before pulling away. 

“I’m really happy you’re here, Jisung, but… why are you here? You said you need help from a witch?” Minho asks, stepping aside to let Jisung in. 

“I really do,” Jisung sighs, but smiles at Minho as he steps into the cottage. “The thing is-” he starts, but is cut off by a loud hiss and a deep growl. Jisung freezes in place, one foot in the door, and looks at Minho. “You have cats?” He asks, his eyes wide and face pale.

“Yeah, um, I’m sorry about them,” Minho answers, his cheeks reddening. He pointedly ignores his familiars’ anger at Jisung stepping foot in their house, because they’re being very rude and he really doesn’t want Jisung to leave him again. 

To his immense disappointment, Jisung backs away from him and his home. Minho’s face falls as he instinctively reaches out to Jisung. “Wait-”

Jisung looks back at Minho, and the fear on his face melts away. “Sorry, hyung,” he says, reverting to his happier deminor, “I do want to come in to visit but um… I’m kind of cursed?” 

Minho stares at him in shock. “Cursed!?” He asks, suddenly very concerned for Jisung. Curses are rare and normally very powerful, as well as dangerous. Most people don’t live long if they’re cursed and don’t get magical help right away. Minho is the best magic user in town, he knows this as a fact. If he isn’t able to help Jisung… then Jisung could- he might- no, Minho won’t let that happen. 

“What’s the curse?” Minho asks, quickly switching into business mode. He takes Jisung’s arm and ushers him into the house, ignoring his familiars as they yowl from his bedroom. Jisung is stiff, and glances around with wide eyes as he’s reluctantly sat down at the kitchen table. “Jisung, what’s the curse?” Minho asks again when he doesn’t answer.

“It’s, um,” Jisung starts to answer, but he’s cut off as the cats start scratching at the door, and their volume increases. 

“Soonie, Doongie, Dori!” Minho stomps over to the hallway and yells down it to his bedroom. “What’s your problem?!” He’s pissed, and he’s sure that his familiars can feel it through their bond. They back down and are quiet, but their own anger and hurt flares in response, hot and intense through their shared magic. Dori, the sweet little thing she is, is upset that she made him angry. Soonie is mostly annoyed, but very worried about Minho. And Doongie is just straight up pissed that Minho isn’t listening to them. 

“Um, hyung?” Jisung pipes up, breaking Minho’s concentration on a heated battle of magical tug-o-war with Doongie as Minho turns to him. “It’s my fault they’re so upset, so please don’t be mad at them.”

Minho lets go of his end of the magic, letting Doongie win. He can feel Doongie gloating. “What? What do you mean it’s your fault?” He asks, coming back over to sit next to Jisung at the table. Potion books and notebooks are still strewn across the table, which Minho hastily closes and pushes aside. 

“What I mean is that they have no choice but to hate me. That’s my curse. That cats hate me and actively try to hurt me,” Jisung explains. “It’s why I have a lot of cuts and stuff,” he adds, gesturing to the fresh looking cuts on his face. 

“Huh,” Minho says, surprised. As far as curses go, this one seems pretty mild; or, at least, in theory it does. Just looking at Jisung proves that this is not an easy curse to live with. It sure is different, though. 

Minho starts thinking of things they could do to try and break the curse, and Jisung must find his silence unsettling, because he clears his throat and hesitantly asks, “do you think you can help me?” 

Minho blinks his eyes a few times as he comes out of thought, and looks at Jisung, making eye contact. “I can break it,” he says, trying to sound confident. He is confident, he has to be. He can’t bear to see Jisung suffer anymore. 

“You can?!” Jisung says, looking at him with large eyes, hopeful eyes.

Minho just nods at him with a reassuring smile. “First things first, though!” He says, and stands to start digging through his bookshelf, looking for the right book. “Aha!” He exclaims, pulling out a heavy, leather bound tome. It makes a loud thud as he places it on the table. He’s hyper aware of Jisung watching him curiously and tries not to let it affect him or make him blush. He’s able to find the right passage after flipping through the pages for a minute or so, and starts reading. 

“Um, hyung, what are you doing?” Jisung asks him.

Minho is quiet for a moment, just dragging his finger along the page as he reads. His finger pauses and he looks up at Jisung. “A spell,” he says simply, then goes back to reading. Once he’s sure he has the right one, he stands and pulls his wand from his pocket.

He clears his throat and, with one last look at the book, begins to trace intricate symbols into the air, leaving a thin trail of magic behind that dissipates into the air after a moment. He says activating words after every symbol in a language he’s sure Jisung can’t understand. Jisung quietly watches him with wide eyes, and Minho has to close his eyes as he finishes up the spell, because he can see Jisung out of the corner of his eye and it’s making his heart race.

As Minho says the last words of the spell, a small light gathers at the end of his wand, then bursts like a bubble, bathing the room in golden light for a moment. Minho sighs in relief as his familiars finally come back to their senses, and he lets the magical lock on his door release so they can come out of his room. 

“Uh, hyung?” Jisung says when he sees Dori rush around the corner to rub against Minho’s legs. His whole body is tense, and he’s poised to sprint if he needs to as he watches two more cats step into the kitchen.

Minho waves Jisung off, “don’t worry,” he says, “I cast a spell that nullifies curses in a small area, so as long as you’re in this house, you should be fine.”

Jisung’s eyebrows raise to his hairline. “Really? That’s a thing? It sounds like a pretty powerful spell…” Jisung trains off, eyeing Minho. 

Suddenly feeling self conscious, Minho shrugs, “Um, I guess it is.” He mumbles, busying himself with putting away the potion books from earlier in the day. “Soonie, sweetheart, remind me to cast that again tomorrow,” he says over his shoulder. Soonie meows.

Dori goes over to Jisung and rubs against his leg, purring and looking up at him. “Dori is sorry that she was angry with you, by the way. Soonie and Doongie aren’t quite as easy to apologize though,” he says, moving to start put potion ingredients back into cabinets and drawers. “They really hate being manipulated by someone else’s magic like that, even though it’s not your fault,” Minho says, giving Jisung a kind smile.

Jisung still looks highly uncomfortable with cats being so close to him, but Dori is working her charms and he’s slowly warming to her. “Hm, yeah, not my fault,” Jisung agrees after a moment. 

Minho sits back down at the table across from Jisung. It’s quiet for a few seconds, and Dori finally jumps up onto Jisung’s lap, who tenses before relaxing again and hesitantly petting her back. She presses into his hand and purrs. Minho smiles at them, and he feels love swell in his heart. He loves Dori, obviously, and Jisung… Jisung has been special to Minho for many, many years. Seeing them getting along means a lot to him.

Minho gets caught up watching them, and only snaps out of it when he notices the cuts on Jisung’s cheek again. “Oh!” He exclaims, getting up from his seat and going to a large, glass front cabinet. He starts looking through the jars stored there before finding the one he needs and coming back to sit at the table. 

“Here,” he says to Jisung as he pops open the lid of the jar, “this will help your cheek.” He dips two fingers into the green-blue cream in the jar and lifts them towards Jisung, who leans forward.

“What’s this?” Jisung asks as Minho starts smoothing the cream over the cuts.

“Just a simple herbal healing balm, it should have those scratches healed in a few seconds,” Minho says, and, sure enough, when Minho pulls his hand away, the scratches have faded into faint scars. 

“Seconds?” Jisung asks, and lifts his fingers to touch his cheek. When he’s met with nothing but smooth skin, his eyes go wide. “It’s gone!” He exclaims, and Minho laughs as he puts it back into the cabinet. “Where’d you get that stuff? I’ve never seen anything that strong before!” Jisung asks.

“I made it,” Minho replies and sits down again.

Jisung just looks at him in surprise, which makes Minho duck his head in embarrassment. “Hyung, you- you’re really good at this magic thing.” 

“Thank you, Jisung,” Minho replies, trying desperately not to blush. “So,” he starts, trying to change the subject, “do you want to stay here while I work on breaking the curse?”

Jisung blinks at him, his mouth still hanging open a little. “W-what? No, no, it’s okay, you don’t have to let me stay here! I don’t want to bother you at all!” He protests, but Minho is already shaking his head.

“I don’t have to let you stay here, but I want you to stay here. Plus, with the spell, you won’t have to worry about stray cats,” Minho reasons, and Jisung’s protests die on his lips.

“You’re right,” Jisung admits, “thank you though, hyung. I really appreciate all you’re doing for me,” he says, and Minho thinks he can see Jisung’s eyes tearing up. “I-It’s just that, no one I’ve asked has been willing to even try to break the curse, and they certainly weren’t as nice as you, a-and they hardly let me in their homes to talk, let alone heal me and offer for me to stay the night! It just-,” Jisung cuts off his words with a sniffle, and Minho is by his side in a second.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay Jisung, really,” he says, pulling a chair over to sit next to him. He cautiously places a hand on Jisung’s shoulder and starts rubbing his hand back and forth. “I’m really happy you’re here, I missed you,” he says, deeply honest. 

Jisung sniffles again and wipes his eyes with the back of his hand. “I’m really happy that I'm here, too, hyung,” he says, and is able to give Minho a small, genuine smile. “I’m really glad it’s you. That you’re the witch everyone was talking about.”

Minho tries not to blush, but he’s sure his cheeks turn pink. “Me, too,” he agrees, looking away from Jisung to hopefully hide his blush. After giving it a few seconds to fade, he looks back at Jisung. “So, what do you want for dinner?”

The rest of the evening is almost painfully domestic, at least for Minho. They make dinner together, then eat sitting across from each other. Jisung washes the dishes, while Minho dries them and puts them away. Through every activity, they chat. They talk a little bit about their current situations, but neither of them seem too willing to dwell on that, so they quickly switch to reminiscing about their childhood together. It’s a lot of fun, Minho finds, to hear Jisung’s perspective on things. 

They end up talking well into the evening, and it’s only when Jisung is interrupted by a yawn that they decide to head to bed. Though Minho offers his bed, Jisung insists on taking the couch. There are plenty of pillows and throw blankets already on it, but Minho gets another blanket, just in case.

Saying goodnight feels a little bit awkward to Minho, but Jisung saves the mood by offering Minho a big smile and opening his arms for another hug. Minho gladly steps into Jisung’s arms, which wrap around him tightly. They stay like this for a moment, but when Minho goes to pull away, Jisung hugs him tighter.

“I missed you, hyung,” Jisung mumbles into Minho’s neck, and Minho tightens his arms around JIsung as well.

“I missed you, too, Sungie,” he says with his face pressed to the side of Jisung’s head. Jisung sighs and loosens his arms a little. On instinct, Minho places a quick kiss to his temple before he pulls away. 

Both have red faces when they step apart, and they say a quick goodnight before heading to bed. 

/

Curses are funny things. They are a strong and powerful kind of magic, but they’re also very delicate. They can be broken the instant they’re cast, if the conditions are right. All curses are always just one word, one action, one thought away from breaking. That’s what makes being cursed so frustrating. Knowing you’re so close, yet so, so far.

/

The next day, Minho wakes with the sun. He’s anxious to start research, so he heads up to his attic that doubles as his study, where most of his books are. He climbs the stairs as quietly as he can, since Jisung is still sleeping on the couch. Once he’s in his study, he starts looking through his meticulously organized bookshelves for anything that has any information of curses.

He has a good stack of books after looking for a few minutes, and settles down at his desk to start reading. Before long, he flips open his notebook and starts writing down notes and ideas. He soon fills a page, and then two. After a few hours, he knows exactly where he wants to start.

“The first thing I want to try,” Minho announces as he walks down the stairs into the living room, “is a Magical Reset.” 

Jisung startles and looks up at him from his position on the couch with Dori sleeping in his lap. He must have woken up while Minho was upstairs. “And… what’s that?” He asks. “Good morning, by the way.”

“Good morning,” Minho says, rushed. “And it’s no big thing, don’t worry,” he says. He’s buzzing with energy now that he has a few ideas on what to try. He’s excited to try them; he’s never broken a curse before. “Come on, get up, we need to go outside to do this!” He says, walking to the door at wait for Jisung. 

“Um, sure,” Jisung responds, and gently wakes Dori. Minho can barely hear him, but he can still pick up on Jisung talking to her in a soft voice. “Alright Dori, we have to get up now.” Dori meows and yawns at the same time, making a whiny noise. “I know baby, it’s okay, go back to sleep,” Jisung says, and Minho peaks around the corner to see him gently placing her on a pillow that was on the sofa. 

Minho fights back a smile as he opens the front door. Jisung joins him after a moment, and they walk out into the small meadow in front of the cottage. They don’t stray too far for fear of exiting the area of the curse-nullifying spell, but they go far enough that they have some room. 

“Okay, now take your shoes off,” Minho instructs. When Jisung gives him an incredulous look, Minho rolls his eyes and says, “just trust me.” So, Jisung takes off his shoes(“Socks too!”) and socks, tossing them to the side. He stands barefoot on a patch of dirt.

“Now spread your arms a little and stand with your legs apart- perfect!” Minho says as Jisung follows along. He pulls out his wand. “Now, I need you to hold as still as you can. It won’t hurt, but you might feel a little weird,” he explains, and places the tip of his wand to the top of Jisung’s head, right along his hairline. 

“Um,” Jisung starts, looking up at the wand with crossed eyes. “Can you explain what you’re going to do?”

“Sure,” Minho says. He starts moving his wand in a slow zig-zag pattern down his face, just a hair away from actually touching his skin. “I’m collecting all the magical energy in your body,” Minho explains. He reaches Jisung’s collarbone, then takes his wand away from Jisung. 

He brings the wand to Jisung’s right hand, then traces all his fingers from their tip to the center of his palm. “And pulling it together into one big clump of magic,” he continues. The wand traces from the center of his palm up his arm to his collarbone. Then, he does the same process with the other arm.

Starting at the base of Jisung’s neck, Minho starts doing slow zig-zags down his torso. “Once all the magic is together,” he says as he starts at Jisung’s hip and moves down his right leg, tracing all the way to his foot. “We can release it.” He goes down the other leg just as slowly, concentrating on pushing the magic. 

“How do we release it?” Jisung asks just as Minho reaches his left foot. 

Minho, now crouched, looks up at Jisung and smirks. “Like this,” he says, and taps the top of Jisung’s right foot with the tip of his wand. 

Almost immediately, Jisung lets out a shout as he loses his balance and has to flail his arms to not fall. His left foot stays firmly planted on the ground, but his right practically slips out from under him. “What was that?!” Jisung asks once he has both feet on the ground. He’s looking at Minho with wide eyes. 

“That,” Minho says, “was the magic leaving.” Without warning, Minho taps the top of Jisung’s left foot with his wand, and Jisung staggers again, but not as severely. Minho laughs a little at his expression of shock. 

“That’s so weird!” Jisung exclaims, stomping his feet back and forth, then walking around a little. “I feel like I’m floating!” He lets out a little laugh and starts jumping around, seeing how high he can go.

Minho laughs along with him as he dances and skips around the field. He looks so happy and carefree, which is something Minho hasn’t seen since Jisung arrived the day before. Jisung was always such a lively kid, one who could change the mood of a room in a second, one who could make any crying person laugh. Minho wonders what changed.

Suddenly, Minho hears a hiss and a growl coming from the front doorway of the cottage, where two of his familiars are sitting. “Jisung!” Minho calls, alarmed, “come back!”

Jisung focuses back on Minho and is quick to jog back to him. Once he gets close enough, the angry noises stop, and Minho can feel the change to annoyance and sadness coming from Doongi and Dori. 

“What’s up, hyung?” Jisung asks as he gets closer, still smiling.

“You were out of the area of the spell, is all,” Minho replies.

Jisung’s smile melts a little. “Ah, so that didn’t work?” He asks.

Minho smiles sadly and shakes his head. “No. Honestly, I didn’t think it would, but it’s good to empty your body of magic, anyway. It makes it easier for new magic to take hold.”

Jisung nods like he understands. “Okay, hyung. I trust you.” He smiles again, but it doesn’t reach his eyes. “So, what’s next?”

/

Over the next few days, they go through Minho’s list of possible ways to break the curse. 

They try soaking Jisung in a bath of a concoction Minho makes; one full of cleansing and healing herbs. All is does is give Jisung pruney fingers.

Minho tries a few countering spells on Jisung, but none of them do much. One turns his hair a dark blue for a few hours(which Minho very much enjoys), but other than that, they have no results.

One night, when it’s a full moon, Minho performs a curse-breaking ritual that he found in one of his books. They sit out in the field under the moonlight as Minho does the ritual, and Jisung claims he feels something rush through his body, but when he steps too far away, the cats still hiss.

As they go through the list, they try their best to keep a positive attitude, but with each failure some of their hope fades. Minho tries to make up for it by joking and talking with him, and by cooking meals he remembers Jisung liking. And Dori is almost always with the cursed boy, trying to provide some comfort. But Minho can tell that Jisung is frustrated and upset. He just wishes he knew how to provide comfort.

One evening, after they’ve gone to bed, Minho lies awake, staring at the ceiling. He’s almost constantly thinking over ideas to try and potions to have Jisung drink, and he’s thinking so hard that he can’t get to sleep. He’s so deep in thought that he doesn’t hear the knock on his door.

“Minho hyung?” Jisung calls softly after Minho doesn’t answer. 

“Jisung?” Minho calls, snapping out of his thoughts as soon as he hears the other’s voice. 

Jisung cracks open the door a bit to look into the room at Minho. “H-hyung?” He says, his voice shaky.

Minho sits up in bed. “What’s wrong?” He’s quick to ask. “Are you okay? Come here,” he says, waving Jisung over to the bed. He stands by the bedside, wringing his hands and looking at the floor.

“Hyung, can I…” he takes a deep, stuttered breath. “Can I sleep in here with you?” He asks, looking up at Minho. “P-please.”

Minho can see tears shining in Jisung’s eyes, and he’s quick to pull back the bed covers. “Of course you can, come here,” he says as he scoots over a little and holds open his arms.

Jisung climbs into bed and straight into Minho’s arms, burying his face in his chest. “I’m sorry,” he says, then starts to sob.

“Jisung, no, there’s no need to be sorry,” Minho says softly while hugging him tight to his chest. He starts rocking them back and forth a little and shushing Jisung. “Shh, it’s okay, it’s alright,” he whispers. He pulls his head back a little to place a firm kiss on Jisung’s forehead before tucking him back under his chin. “You’ll be okay,” he promises.

After ten or so minutes, Jisung calms down, and only occasionally hiccups a sob. They stay quiet, just holding each other. Jisung’s breathing slows and he relaxes in Minho’s arms, and it’s obvious he’s finally asleep. Minho breaths a sad sigh, and kisses his hair before relaxing and finally falling asleep.

/

Things change a little after that night. They’re no longer feverishly running through possible ways to break the curse, but instead are enjoying each other’s company more. They still try, of course, but they’re less rushed about it. 

When they’re not focusing on breaking Jisung’s curse, they talk more, and learn about each other. They are almost constantly talking; while they cook together, while Minho mixes the potions he’s supposed to be making, while they’re going to sleep at night. Though most conversations are light hearted, they find themselves talking about more personal things at night.

Jisung has been sleeping in Minho’s bed every night, and it’s while they’re laying side by side, hand in hand, that Jisung opens up about how he came to be cursed.

“Well, it’s… actually kind of embarrassing. Or, I guess I’m ashamed of how it happened,” Jisung confesses. He takes a deep breath and sighs into the darkness. “You know how I told you both of my parents passed away?” Jisung asks. 

Minho hums; yes, he remembers Jisung mentioning that on a previous night. Jisung said that his dad caught the illness his mom had, and they both passed away within a month of each other.

“Well, with them gone I had nowhere to stay, and hardly any money,” Jisung explains. “And I was heartbroken, of course. I didn’t have any motivation to work- I was a little too young for most jobs anyway. So, I ended up on the streets. And after a few weeks, some older kids found me and took me under their wings,” again, he sighs. It’s a sad sound, and Minho squeezes Jisung’s hand. 

“I owe them so much,” he says quietly, and then it’s silent for a few moments before he speaks again. “They let me stay in their little house that was already so crowded, and they gave me food. And eventually… one of them taught me how to steal,” Jisung confesses. Minho is surprised, but doesn’t show any reaction. He can tell Jisung is self conscious about this. 

“I refused at first, of course, but… they had done so much for me at that point, and I just wanted to help them. It was… the best option at the time.” Jisung pauses and shifts around on the bed to get more comfortable. “I was with them for years. Up until I was cursed, actually.” Again, a pause. “I was best at pickpocketing. I don’t know what it is about it, but I took to it really well.”

One day, I was in the market at the center of town looking for people to swipe something from,” he takes a deep breath, and his voice lowers in volume. “I found this one lady. She was dressed real nice, and she had this coat on with big open pockets. I saw her put her coin purse in the right pocket, so I started trailing her. When I got right behind her, I stuck my hand in her pocket and grabbed the purse. But… as soon as I pulled it out of her pocket, she spun around and grabbed my wrist.”

Jisung gulps before continuing. “She looked me straight in the eye, called me a petty thief, and said, ‘May the kin of his magic openly seek your demise.’” They sit in silence for a moment as Jisung seems to think something over. “Then she told me to give back what I stole, and she snatched the purse from my hand. She disappeared into the crowd before I could even understand what she said.”

It’s quiet for a moment before Minho speaks up with a voice soft like Jisung’s. “How do you know it was her that cursed you? Are you sure you didn’t… steal some weird enchanted item or something?”

Jisung is shaking his head before Minho finishes speaking. “No, it was her. I felt… different when I left the market after that. Like something was  _ wrong.  _ Plus, the next stray cat I saw launched itself at me, so it became pretty obvious.”

Minho huffs a short laugh, then turn his head to look at Jisung. “I’m sorry this happened to you,” he says, soft and sad.

“It’s my fault,” Jisung says back. “I  _ knew _ stealing was bad, and I chose to do it anyway. Karma, I guess,” he shrugs.

“Seems like pretty harsh karma,” Minho mumbles. It’s obvious by now that the curse is more than it first appears. He’s seen Jisung shirtless by this point, and has seen all the scars and scabbed over wounds. There’s a huge slash across his chest that makes Minho wonder how he survived. 

They don’t talk anymore that night.

/

It’s weird how the smallest things Jisung does can make Minho’s heart race.

As they’ve grown accustomed to living together, Jisung seems to have noticed certain things about Minho. Like, he noticed that Minho always forgets to cork the ink bottle after he’s finished writing, so he does it himself. And when Minho leaves to deliver his potions and charms to the town, his hair is always messy from the stress of getting everything ready, so Jisung will comb through it with his fingers to make it more presentable before he leaves. 

Minho has noticed that he’s picked up on little things Jisung does too. For one, Jisung is constantly losing his socks, so Minho makes it a point to give Jisung a pair of his own when they get ready in the morning. He also notices how Jisung sometimes still flinches when his familiars meow, so he asks them politely to tone it down around Jisung.

They move around each other so easily, like they’ve been living together for years. It should be odd, adjusting to someone so quickly, but Minho just finds it exciting. When he was a young teenager, he used to daydream about living with Jisung when they grew up, and now it’s a reality. 

Through all this, he’s realized that, even if Jisung doesn’t feel the same way, Minho loves him, and that’s enough. It’s enough for him to just have Jisung close, and to know that he’s safe- or, as safe as he can be while cursed. It’s enough just to be able to hear his laugh each day, and to see him smile.

He’s considered that maybe he’s viewing Jisung through rose colored glasses, but as they’ve gotten closer and talked more openly, he finds that he loves  _ all _ of Jisung; sadness, past, and curse included. 

Being so close to him and sharing so much of his life with him is like Minho’s childhood dream come true. He thought he’d lost this dream when Jisung left with his parents; that he’d lost Jisung. He was devastated, and it felt like a piece of his heart was torn out. But now that fate has lead them together again, well… it finally feels like that tear is mending.

/

“Hey, hyung?” Jisung speaks up one day as he’s sitting at the kitchen table, watching Minho mix a potion. “How did you become a witch? I… really don’t know much about magic,” he admits, but Minho already knew that.

“Hmm,” Minho hums as he measures out an ingredient. “Well, it’s kind of just something you’re born with,” Minho says. “It’s different for everyone, but the magic didn’t show itself to me until after you’d left.”

“How did it show itself?” Jisung asks, listening intently to Minho.

Minho looks up and smiles at Jisung. “It came with Soonie,” he says. “We knew I was magic when she showed up.”

“Ah, so  _ she’s  _ your familiar!” Jisung says, and Minho raises an eyebrow at him. “Hey! I said I don’t know  _ much _ about magic, not that I didn’t know anything!”

Minho laughs and Jisung joins in, then Minho says, “they’re all my familiars, actually.”

Jisung looks confused. “Don’t witches only have one familiar, though? How can you have three?”

Keeping his eyes down on his work, Minho flushes a little and answers, “witches  _ do  _ only have one familiar. I’m a, uh… special case.”

Jisung doesn’t say anything, and the only sound in the room is the bubbling of the cauldron and the tick of a clock on the wall. Minho peaks up at Jisung to find him looking deep in thought. “So, you must really be a very powerful witch, then, right?” He finally asks, and Minho laughs a little at the question.

“Well, yes, I guess,” he answers, slightly bashful. “But,” he continues, more serious, “it makes people afraid of me, or think I’m weird,” he admits, then sighs. “I’ve had to move a few times because people in the villages found out about Doongie and Dori and started being… well, mean and violent, sometimes,” he shrugs. “One time someone managed to kidnap Doongie, but I got her back before anything happened.” He still gets nightmares about losing one of his familiars, though.

“That’s awful,” Jisung proclaims, and Minho looks up at him in shock at how angry he sounds. “So what if it means your more powerful? You’d never use your magic to hurt anyone!” He says, his fists and jaw clenched. 

“Jisungie, it’s okay-”

“No it’s not!” Jisung interrupts. “I’m sorry I’m so angry, but I just  _ hate  _ the idea of someone being mean to you- or trying to hurt you! You- You’ve only used your magic to help and heal since I’ve been here! You’re always making those healing potions and medicine, and you’ve tried so hard to help me! And for nothing in return!” Jisung’s face is getting red, and Minho thinks he can see tears building in his eyes. “You’ve let me practically move in, and you haven’t asked for a single thing! You’re so  _ good _ , Minho, so helpful and kind and wonderful. And I- I don’t know- I don’t think I could ever repay you,” he says, and tears fall down his cheeks when he blinks, and he looks at his lap in shame.

Minho stands frozen, just looking at Jisung. He never knew Jisung thought so highly of him. Cautiously, Minho moves to kneel next to Jisung and takes his hand in his own. “Jisung, I would never ask for you to repay me. I’m not helping you to get something out of it. I’m helping you because I want to. Because you’re important to me.”

Jisung sniffs and wipes his eyes with the back of his free hand. He looks up at Minho, meeting his eyes. They stare at each other for a moment, just taking each other in. “Hyung,” he starts, his voice wavering a bit, “I need to tell you something.” 

Minho nods encouragingly and leans in closer. “Anything, Jisung. You can tell me anything.”

“Minho hyung… Since I left you as a kid, I’ve never stopped thinking about you. I always wondered what you were doing and if you were happy and safe,” he pauses to take a shaky breath and looks down at his lap again. “And then, when fate brought us together again, I couldn’t stop myself from… from falling in love with you,” he says, meeting Minho’s eyes again. 

Minho lets out a small gasp, and he feels like his whole body lights up. He can feel his pulse racing, and his breath stutters, and the magic flowing through him thrums with energy. Jisung… loves him back. Jisung actually loves him back. It’s such a beautiful and overwhelming feeling that his heart actually hurts.

“A-and I’m sorry I didn’t say anything sooner, and I feel like I took advantage of you by staying here so long without telling you and-” Jising rushes on, oblivious to Minho’s euphoria. 

“No, no, Jisung,” Minho interrupts with a smile and a giddy little laugh. He reaches up to cup his cheek. “Jisung, baby, I love you too,” Minho says, and it feels like a relief to finally say it out loud. His own eyes well with tears and they quickly overflow and run down his face. 

“Y-you do?” Jisung asks, eyes wide. 

Minho nods, “yes, of course I do.”

Jisung smiles wide through his tears and curls forward to wrap as much of Minho in his arms as he can with Minho still kneeling on the floor. Minho’s head ends up pressed to his chest, but neither mind as they cling to each other. 

“I’m so happy,” Jisung whispers after they’ve both stopped crying. He leans back a little and places a kiss on Minho’s forehead, then leans back further to cup Minho’s face. “Hyung, can I kiss you?” He asks, so sweet and hopeful, making Minho’s heart melt.

“Of course,” Minho says, and they lean forward at the same time to meet in the middle. 

Their first kiss is soft and slow, and gets interrupted by smiles. They both love it, though, and go back for a second kiss, and a third. 

Each kiss feels like a dream come true to Minho. It feels like coming home, like comfort, like happiness, like love. Eventually they pull away with smiles on their lips and gleeful giggles. 

Their moment is broken by Dori jumping in between them to get on Jisung’s lap. Jisung laughs and hugs her, too. She’s purring loudly, and through their bond Minho can feel her happiness for them. To the side, Soonie meows, and Minho looks to her with a smile. She, too, is happy, but there’s also pride mixed in. He reaches over to scoop her up in his arms and hug her close.

Then, he feels Doongie headbutt his side, and he looks down to her and wraps his other arm around her. She’s happy as well, but she also feels fondly exasperated that it took them this long. Minho’s inclined to agree.

That night, instead of sleeping side by side holding hands, they curl up together tightly, clinging to each other and occasionally pressing kisses to whatever skin they can reach. They fall asleep easily, feeling safe and relaxed in each other’s arms.

/

Minho blinks awake just after sunrise the next day. His vision is filled with the top of Jisung’s head, and he sighs happily as he tightens his arms around him. 

Once he’s more awake, he pulls back a little to look at Jisung’s face. He’s still asleep, with eyes closed and mouth slightly parted. He looks beautiful, Minho thinks. His lips look so soft and pink, and his eyelashes fan over the smooth skin of his cheeks, and-  _ wait. Smooth skin? _

Pulling back more, Minho gets a better look at Jisung’s face. Where there once were layered scars from various cats, there is now clear, unblemished skin. Minho stares at his face for a few minutes, dumbstruck, before he’s shaking Jisung awake.

“Jisung, hey, love, wake up,” he says, keeping his voice soft in the early morning.

“Wha-?” Jisung mumbles as he wakes up. He yawns, then says, “hyung, what’s happening?”

“Jisung, I- I think your curse is broken!”

_ That _ wakes Jisung up. He sits up in bed and looks down at Minho with wide eyes. “What? How do you know?”

“You scars are gone!” He explains, and they stare at each other for a moment before they’re both racing out of bed and into the field surrounding the cottage. Jisung heads for the line where they know the curse-nullifying spell ends with Minho hot on his trail. The cats follows them curiously to the front door, then stop to watch.

Once Jisung crosses the line of the spell, he whips around to look at Minho, who feels no anger or hate coming from his familiars; only curiosity and annoyance at being woken up.

“It’s broken,” Minho says, surprisingly calm. They both break out into joyous smiles and rush for each other, meeting in a hug in the middle. “It’s broken!” 

Jisung lets out a loud, excited cheer and starts jumping up and down with his arms still wrapped around Minho. “It’s broken!” He echos in a shout. He quickly calms down though and looks at Minho. “You did it! How’d you do it?” He asks with wide eyes and a huge smile.

“I-I don’t know!” Minho admits, suddenly a little confused. “I just woke up and noticed your scars were gone!” 

They stare at each other for a moment as they process this, then Jisung smirks. “Maybe it was true love’s kiss,” he says and wiggles his eyebrows.

Minho groans as he scrunches his nose and playfully shoves Jisung, “no way it’s that cheesy!” 

Jisung laughs loudly, “you never know!” 

Minho smiles with him, “I guess we won’t know.”

“That’s okay with me,” Jisung proclaims. “Who cares! Now I’m curse free  _ and  _ I have you! Honestly, what more could I ask for?”

Minho doesn’t answer, he just pulls Jisung in for a short, celebratory kiss. Really, what more could he ask for?

**Author's Note:**

> I really hope this didn't feel too rushed ;-;
> 
> but yeah! I loved including the three best cats in South Korea, they were so fun. I've never written minsung before, or Minho or Jisung at all really, so I hope they weren't too weird. I also have so much lore and stuff built up in my brain for this universe, so maybe something else in the same AU someday? who knows. I sure don't.
> 
> and, hey, can you guess how they broke the curse? it's super cheesy and probably pretty obvious but let me know what you think!


End file.
